Hamilton working on ‘master plan’ for Shanghai win

Lewis Hamilton’s debut Ferrari victory in the Chinese Grand Prix sprint event on Saturday hinted at a potential dream weekend in Shanghai, but qualifying brought a reality check for the seven-time world champion.

After securing sprint pole and the win, the seven-time champion could only muster fifth on the grid for Sunday’s race, with teammate Charles Leclerc alongside in sixth.

Changes to the Ferrari SF25 after Sprint Qualifying rendered his mount it “quite snappy,” Hamilton revealed, tempering his single-lap pace. Yet, with a track that rewards strategy and a fresh mindset, the Briton is still plotting a path to the podium.

‘The Car Became Quite Snappy’

Despite the sprint success, qualifying didn’t go as planned, with Hamilton admitting that the Ferrari became harder to handle.

"We made a couple of changes to the car after sprint qualifying to rectify some problems we had. And I don't know if it's with the wind, but the car became quite snappy,” he explained.

"I think the lap wasn't the cleanest at the end, and I should have been a couple of tenths further up, or a tenth at least, so we're not terribly far away, but not ideal."

Hamilton’s final Q3 effort fell short of perfection. His former Mercedes teammate George Russell took second, splitting the McLarens of Oscar Piastri and Lando Norris, with Max Verstappen in fourth – all ahead of Hamilton’s fifth.

The gap wasn’t vast, but it left him playing catch-up.

Race Pace Hopes

Despite the qualifying dip, Hamilton remains buoyed by his sprint form. When asked if he can recapture that pace on Sunday, he said, “I mean, I hope so. I really do hope so.

“We made some changes to improve race performance, but it was definitely harder on a single lap, so it’s gonna be interesting tomorrow.

“It’s a great track to race on. It’s not a circuit where you only have one line everywhere, so that’s the positive. But, you can see people still struggling to follow one another this morning.

“So how you use the tyres, when you use the tyres is going to be key tomorrow.”

Tyre management, a headache all weekend, will indeed be pivotal. Hamilton’s sprint win showed he could nurse rubber from the front, but starting fifth shifts the dynamic.

“I’m in a much different position as well, but I feel optimistic for tomorrow,” he added.

“I think I would like to get a good start and jump at least one car and then slowly make up. Tonight I’m just gonna make a master plan of how to win and I’ve got to try and execute it, but that’s where my mindset is at.”

Mindset and Team Sync

Hamilton’s optimism reflects a growing comfort at Ferrari after last week’s struggles in melbourne.

“I mean, it’s gonna swing in roundabouts, right? It’s gonna be ups and downs. And again this afternoon we didn’t expect to be 5 and 6, or at least I didn’t expect to be where I am. But it’s what we can be faced with through the season,” he said.

“So, I’ve just got to try and stay calm. I’m gonna just give everything tomorrow and see where we turn.”

Read also:

• Chinese GP: Piastri leads the field with maiden F1 pole

His rapport with new race engineer Riccardo Adami is blossoming too.

“We have a great rapport, so it’s like everyone’s saying that we don’t. We genuinely already do, and it will continue to get better, but he’s got a great sense of humour.”

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